Philadelphia Union: Players seek to make big statement in Big Apple

CHESTER — There wasn’t much mincing of words at PPL Park this week: The Philadelphia Union are out to make a statement today against the New York Red Bulls.

Despite carrying a 2-1-0 record this season, the Union’s wins have come against teams that missed the playoffs last season in Colorado and New England.

So you can’t blame the players for seeing the stars aligning this weekend (3:30, NBCSN) when the Union have a chance to take down an injury-riddled and winless New York team that they have never beaten away from home.

“They have a different team than they did last year, a different manager, different circumstances,” midfielder Michael Lahoud said Wednesday. “I think for us, it’s focusing on the present and saying hey, we have a really good chance to make a statement. This is a statement game. This is a big game. This is the kind of games that I want to play in and I think our team is made to play in.”

There’s a revenge factor at work against a team that the Union lost to three times last season. But more important is the opportunity presented by the Red Bulls, who haven’t lived up to the lofty expectations the New York franchise sets for itself.

There’s been a revolving door in central defense next to offseason acquisition Jamison Olave. The pieces of the Red Bulls midfield, which include such household names as Australian international and Premier League veteran Tim Cahill and Brazilian Juninho, haven’t clicked. And injuries will rule out the most dangerous facet of the attack (Fabian Espindola) and severely hamper another key piece (Thierry Henry), who may not start.

In coach Mike Petke’s first season, the Red Bulls (0-2-2, 2 points) have struggled, and the unrest has turned into a pair of personnel moves this week. Striker Andre Akpan was brought in from Colorado and could feature today, while veteran MLS goalkeeper Kevin Hartman has also been added.

Instead of feeling complacent against the Red Bulls, the Union are smelling blood in the water.

“We haven’t really talked about it to be fair, and the players have talked about it,” manager John Hackworth said of his players treating this as a statement game. “And when I hear things like that, I know I don’t have to go and reinforce those messages. If players are talking about it and I hear those things or assistant coaches hear them, that’s really what you want. If the players are already having those conversations, it means that we can focus on other things.

“It’s good to know that a guy like Michael, and I know I’ve heard it from BC (Brian Carroll) and Jeff (Parke) and Sebastien (Le Toux), that this is a really important game for us.”

The Union are coming off a bye in which they won a friendly, 1-0, with Mexican side Pumas. While there weren’t many injuries to nurse — Gabriel Farfan’s nagging hamstring is the only one likely to affect selection — it’s been a chance to work out some of the early-season kinks. Hackworth admitted Wednesday that the performances from his depth players against Pumas may impact who sees the field and who makes the bench for New York.

The reasons to be amped up — which include Le Toux playing against the team he spent the end of last year with and a chance to score an early signature win — are myriad. But perhaps most important is that the Union have a chance to play the kind of controlled, sustained game they’ve hoped for all season.

“I don’t think we’re going to go there and just sit back and try to defend for 90 minutes,” Lahoud said. “I think it’s going to be a game that’s going to allow us to play at times, but it’s going to be more importantly a game that we have to manage. The longer we can manage the game, the more I think that desperation, that frustration in them will come out, giving us a chance to get a result there.”

Where some may sense desperation on the part of the Red Bulls, there’s also a sense of urgency of a very different kind permeating the Union’s preparations.

“A game like this is the type of game that as a coach and as a player you look forward to, to bring a spark and gain momentum and turn around,” Lahoud said. “I think for them, they’re looking for anything to turn their season around to take the pressure off themselves, and for us I think it’s a massive opportunity to make a statement to a rival and to the rest of the league saying, ‘hey, we’re for real and we’re going to go into a tough environment and show you guys we’re for real.’”